Settling In (Bonus Chapter for 2,000 Recommendation Votes)

Speaking of which, Headmaster Liu's guidance

was actually somewhat utilitarian in nature.

If Zhang Qingyuan had still been an utterly ordinary disciple, if he had not displayed his fourth-layer Water Essence Art and Great Accomplishment Nine Refinements Bone Forging Fist in his battle against Yao Ping, if he had remained unremarkable, without a single thing worth remembering, would Headmaster Liu have specifically asked him to stay behind after the gathering dispersed, giving him private instruction personally?

Impossible!

The path of cultivation was long and endless.

Though he had taken a step ahead on the road of cultivation, no one knew what the future might bring.

By guiding outstanding juniors, he could first build goodwill.

If they grew in the future, they might well become connections and aid on his own path of cultivation.

It was simply seeing promise in them

and investing in advance.

Besides, even if it failed and Zhang Qingyuan were to fall on the path of growth someday, there would be no real loss.

Zhang Qingyuan had vaguely sensed the selfish motives behind Headmaster Liu's goodwill, but he did not care.

Nor was there anything to care about.

Was he supposed to pass up this chance to receive personal instruction from a True Essence Realm expert, absorb that knowledge of cultivation, and make his Self-Cultivation steadier and more solid, just because Headmaster Liu had acted unfairly before, and insist on resisting?

That would be sheer madness!

Headmaster Liu's guidance for Zhang Qingyuan's cultivation

lasted for more than two hours.

Within that short span of time, Zhang Qingyuan gained tremendously. The proficiency of his Water Essence Art alone Increased Again by 37 points, while the proficiency of his Nine Refinements Bone Forging Fist, as well as his other martial skills and spell arts, all improved to A Certain Degree.

This was the result of Zhang Qingyuan's accumulated efforts finally bearing fruit.

Had it not been for

his persistent training time and again before this, laying down an incomparably solid foundation long ago, even if Headmaster Liu had instructed him alone for an entire day, he might not necessarily have made such progress.

After expressing his thanks, Zhang Qingyuan respectfully bade Headmaster Liu farewell

before walking down Chaoyang Peak.

At this time, the disciples from the surrounding branch courtyards had mostly left. Only scattered groups of Outer Sect Disciples from the Seventeenth Branch remained, cultivating in the vast plaza of Chaoyang Peak.

Zhang Qingyuan's passing through

immediately drew several gazes.

After all, not long ago, he had caused a small stir, going from an utterly inconspicuous nobody

to someone with a modest reputation in the branch courtyard.

Many people were curious.

"Qingyuan, not bad! I never thought you'd really defeat that Yao Ping, that guy who strutted around like he owned the place all day. I heard that after he woke up, he's been silent the whole time. That defeat hit him hard!"

A figure hurried over from behind, patting Zhang Qingyuan on the shoulder.

His voice was filled with excitement, Zhang Qingyuan turned his head and looked.

It was none other than Jiang Yuan, the friend who had warned him to be careful earlier.

"Yao Ping was simply too careless. I only won by a narrow stroke of luck!"

Zhang Qingyuan said with a calm expression.

There was not the slightest hint of pride on his face from having defeated Yao Ping and made such a splash, as though he had merely done something utterly insignificant.

In truth, the methods he had displayed during his battle with Yao Ping were not all he had. He had yet to use Silver Shadow, the low-grade top-tier Magic Tool he had purchased before.

If he had used Silver Shadow

together with the Cloud Water Thirteen Sword Styles, which he had cultivated to Great Accomplishment, and unleashed all his strength, Yao Ping would likely have lost even faster and more miserably, while Zhang Qingyuan's methods would have shocked everyone even more.

However, the soul beneath the youth's body had long since become that of an adult.

Though the envious, admiring gazes of the surrounding Fellow Sect Members stirred a faint pleasure in Zhang Qingyuan's heart, he had no great desire to show off.

When one could keep a Trump Card in reserve, it was naturally better to keep it firmly in one's own hand.

"Hey, you—why do you always act so world-weary, like some Old Man? Being high-spirited in one's youth is what people our age ought to do!"

Jiang Yuan was somewhat helpless as well.

Then his tone shifted.

"What a pity. If I didn't have matters to deal with lately, I'd definitely gather the others and throw you a Celebration Feast, so everyone would know that although we aren't good at fighting, we aren't people others can knead and squeeze however they please!"

Zhang Qingyuan ignored the latter half of his earlier words, focusing instead on the phrase "matters to deal with."

His brows drew together slightly.

"What happened? I really haven't seen much of you lately. Do you need help?"

"It's nothing. My family has run into a few problems. I should be able to handle them myself."

"If you need it, I can help as well. So long as it is within my capabilities, I definitely won't refuse!"

"Don't worry. If it really comes to that, Qingyuan, you'll be the one I rely on!"

The two talked for a while longer, then parted and went their separate ways.

Watching Jiang Yuan's figure gradually recede into the distance, Zhang Qingyuan frowned slightly.

Indeed, over the past few days, he seemed not to have seen Jiang Yuan much at all. He had even missed Headmaster Liu's Lecture last time.

Could something really have happened?

Zhang Qingyuan thought.

"Forget it. If something really has happened, I'll help if I can."

Jiang Yuan and Zhang Qingyuan were not Outer Sect Disciples of the same intake.

He had entered the branch's outer sect three years before Zhang Qingyuan.

When Zhang Qingyuan had first entered the Seventeenth Branch, perhaps because their personalities suited one another, the two had become friends.

In those early days, Jiang Yuan had helped Zhang Qingyuan settle down quickly in the Seventeenth Branch. In particular, Jiang Yuan was experienced in cultivating the Spring Breeze Fine Rain Technique and tending to Spirit Fields and Spirit Plants. Since he often worked the Spirit Fields and cared for Spirit Plants, he had given Zhang Qingyuan tremendous help during his early days.

If Jiang Yuan truly encountered some trouble, and Zhang Qingyuan had the ability to help, then he would lend him a hand.

With those thoughts in mind, Zhang Qingyuan returned to his room in the Inner Residence.

Over the following days, Zhang Qingyuan remained cooped up in the Inner Residence, sorting through and absorbing the various cultivation knowledge and experiences Headmaster Liu had personally taught him, improving his cultivation strength.

During this period of time, words indicating increased proficiency occasionally appeared on the panel. Whether it was his Cultivation Method or Martial Skills, their proficiency levels steadily rose.

This was Zhang Qingyuan constantly adjusting himself, digging into the latent potential of the foundation behind him.

As for the changes to the panel, such as the Combination Skill section that had appeared at some unknown point, though he was somewhat surprised, he did not immediately turn his attention to it. Instead, he devoted himself wholeheartedly to digesting and understanding the knowledge Headmaster Liu had taught him.

Changes to the panel

could be viewed and considered at any time, but Headmaster Liu's guidance had to be seized while the memories were still clear. He needed to record certain tricks and make corresponding adjustments during cultivation.

It was like a time-limited beneficial buff carried by a player in a game.

Naturally, while its duration still remained, he had to raise the proficiency of his various abilities as much as possible.

Five days later, all the knowledge from Headmaster Liu's personal instruction had become part of Zhang Qingyuan's accumulation, settling into proficiency on the panel.

The boost from the guidance had run out, and the rate at which the panel's proficiency increased during cultivation returned to a snail's pace. Sometimes, he had to cultivate ten or twenty times before it increased by another single point.

Zhang Qingyuan knew

that Headmaster Liu's guidance, along with the solid foundation he had accumulated before, had basically been used up.

The speed of improvement

naturally slowed as a result.

Having grown accustomed to rapid progress, Zhang Qingyuan

could not help but feel a sense of loss.

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